Main:Nia Dennis
Columbus, Ohio, USA |Row 4 title = Years on National Team |Row 4 info = 2013-2015 |Row 5 title = Club |Row 5 info = Legacy Elite Gymnastics; Buckeye Gymnastics (former) |Row 6 title = Coach(es) |Row 6 info = Wu Jiani, Li Yuejo; Kittia Carpenter (former) |Row 7 title = Current status |Row 7 info = Retired |Row 8 title = College team |Row 8 info = UCLA Bruins}}Nia Dennis (born February 23, 1999) is a retired American elite gymnast. She trained at Legacy Elite Gymnastics in Illinois under 1984 Chinese Olympians Wu Jiani and Li Yuejo. Prior to her move there in 2015, she trained at Buckeye Gymnastics in New Albany, Ohio. Her favorite event is vault. She began attending UCLA in 2017. Junior Career 2011 Dennis did not qualify to elite status until 2011. She made her international debut at the Rushmoor Invitational in Farnborough, England, where she swept all five events. 2012 In 2012, Dennis dropped back to Level 10 status and qualified to the Nastia Liukin Cup, where she placed fifth in the all-around. She returned to elite status to compete at the Junior Visa Championships. 2013 At a training camp in early June, Dennis was added to the Junior National team.National team In July, Dennis competed at the US Classic, winning gold in vault and silver on floor exercise, and placing fifth in the all-around. At Nationals, she won silver on vault, and placed fourth in the all-around, sixth on beam, and fourth on floor. In November, Dennis was announced as a competitor for the Mexico Open,Mexico Open but withdrew from the lineup a week before the competition.withdrawal 2014 In March, she was named to the junior American team for the City of Jesolo Trophy, which marked her international debut.Jesolo She contributed to the American's gold medal finish, and won silver behind Bailie Key in the all-around and on uneven bars. Following Jesolo, she was named to the American team for the Pacific Rim Championships, where she won team gold, all-around and vault silver, and placed sixth on floor.Pac Rims Dennis competed at the U.S. Classic in early August. Due to the large amount of juniors, Dennis was one of the few juniors competing in the senior division, but she was still scored with the juniors. She won gold on bars, and silver in the all-around, vault, and balance beam. She repeated her silver medal finish in the all-around at Nationals, and picked up additional gold medals on vault and floor, and bronze on bars. Senior Career 2015 Dennis missed the City of Jesolo Trophy and Pan American Games earlier in the year. In July, she left Buckeye Gymnastics to train at Legacy Elite Gymnastics in Illinois.left Buckeye for Legacy Elite Fresh from her gym change, she competed in the senior division of the U.S. Classic for the first time. She only competed on vault, bars, and beam as a precaution, placing sixth on bars and seventh on beam. In August, she competed at the National Championships. She had a good competition on both days, placing fourth on balance beam and ninth in the all-around, keeping her spot on the National Team. 2016 At the beginning of the season, Dennis was named to compete at the Stuttgart World Cup,Stuttgart World Cup but a torn Achilles tendon forced her to withdraw.torn Achilles She was well enough to perform an exhibition uneven bars routine at the U.S. Classic in June. She only competed on uneven bars at the National Championships, placing eighth. Dennis retired from elite competition in January 2017.retirement She attended UCLA that fall.UCLA Medal Count Floor Music 2015 - "Infiltrado" by Bajofondo References